President Joe Biden of the United States, has supported Isreal’s course in eliminating the Hamas terror group but gave a negative response about the nation reoccupying the Gaza Strip.
Speaking in an interview with CBS on Sunday, Biden stressed that reoccupying the Gaza Strip would be a “big mistake.”
President Biden gave his two cent as Israeli troops prepared for a ground invasion of the territory.
He expressed optimism that Israeli forces would try to minimise civilian casualties and take steps to avoid a dire humanitarian crisis in the Strip.
Bring to mind that Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Prime Minister, vowed to eradicate Hamas in reaction to the terror group’s suprise attack against Isreal on October 7, which resulted in the death of over 1,300 people and least 155 more taken hostage to Gaza.
The victims comprised of men, women, and children, including dozens of babies, and some of the victims were mutilated and there were reportedly incidents of rape, and torture of children.
Reacting to the horiffic assault and Israel’s response, Biden said, “I think Israel has to respond. They have to go after Hamas. Hamas is a bunch of cowards. They’re hiding behind the civilians.”
Invading and “taking out the extremists” is a “necessary requirement,” he added.
Asked if Hamas must be eliminated entirely, he replied: “Yes I do.”
However, asked if he would support any occupation of Gaza by Israel, Biden replied: “I think it’d be a big mistake.”
Look, what happened in Gaza, in my view, is Hamas, and the extreme elements of Hamas, don’t represent all the Palestinian people. And I think that it would be a mistake for Israel to occupy Gaza again.”
Israel took control of the Gaza Strip during the 1967 Six Day War, then unilaterally left in 2005, enabling the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority to take control of the enclave.
A year later, in response to rocket fire, Israel imposed an air, land and sea blockade on the 140-square-mile (362-square-kilometer) strip of land, which is also bordered by Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea.
|Vanguard
